[Midnight Hotel] February catch-all

[gistful]

Characters: Anyone, everyone.
Date: Month of February, 2016 (2017 in-game).
Location: The Midnight Hotel.
Situation: Catch-all post! Feel free to use this post for anything that happens within the Midnight Hotel during the month, using the subject header to label specific rooms or for specific people. See also the OOC note at the bottom.
Warnings/Rating: Mark your threads if content warnings become applicable, please!

This month the Hotel’s wards are back up to snuff, thanks to the fog being blown off. Notably, the main doors open into all sectors once more – which is a relief to anyone who made a habit of using the Hotel for a shortcut. As always, the windows and garage doors still only open into Central.

There’s a sizeable flow of traffic in and out, mostly due to visitors from Hatal and their curiosity. Apparently it’s gotten around that the Hotel is magical and a common location for Foreigners and odd things, and as a result there’s a bit of a ‘tourist’ feel in the Hotel this month. Foreigners may find themselves being treated as novelties and asked to do magic, even if they aren't magical. The igheeri seem mostly interested in critiquing the architecture (for which they are too tall) and the sinayg can be found trying to listen to the magic in the walls (the exact sound of which is apparently a subject of hot debate), while the muin just seem to want to immerse themselves in the ‘culture’.

About mid-month Anton will toss out and ban a group of five Jagaiz fighters, to the surprise of no one who’s seen them for more than five minutes. They’re all the sort which are good enough at fighting to think they’re the best even though none of them are champions; low-grade braggers and bullies, essentially. Other, politer Jagaiz fighters who visit, if asked, will confirm that their lot isn’t particularly well-liked and their means of gaining sponsorship is a bit suspect.

None of the five suffer more than a few broken bones (and a concussion), and the loss of a few cheap items they forfeited by being forcibly shown the door.

Otherwise, for the observant, much of the furniture has been ‘labelled’ with small English or Chinese engravings in unobtrusive places – courtesy of River. Visitors from Hatal apparently find this ‘culture’ of naming possessions ‘delightful’. In other news, there’s a new kedan by the name of Dardul permanently residing at the Hotel. He’s a bit vacant with obvious memory issues, and is liable to forget people who talk to him; he’s regularly visited by Milyn and is under the care of another permanent resident, Malcil, who seems to prefer not to talk much with strangers himself.

In other other news, Anton can be seen wearing a colourful party hat all day on the 7th of the month, with bonus party tooter in his jacket pocket which he will absolutely use to greet Erskine every time they talk (while wearing a very bland expression).

[ooc: The Midnight Hotel’s status page is available here, with the rules at the top and ongoing status at the bottom. PLEASE POST TO THE STATUS PAGE IF YOUR CHARACTER WOULD LIKE A ROOM, JOB OR AREA IN THE GARAGE, OR ARE MOVING OUT. Anton will manufacture means of payment until Foreigners are able to properly offer recompense or choose to move out.]

Comments

John Constantine | Constantine | OTA

[hellboundheart]

In John's Room

When it came to his room, one could tell if John wanted company or not by if his door was hanging open. When it was shut, the Hotel's own wards as well as some John had layered on for additional protection. Never trust another's work when he knew the level of his own. True to his word, John's room didn't have a cigarette smell to it although it did often look like a man who didn't care much about his surroundings lived there. His 'workspace' was clear of any clutter, a few empty bottles of various colours sitting benignly in a circle. If one looked closely, each was enscribed with different sigils and symbols. To the magically inclined, each had a different prey.

Seemed that most of John's money had gone to getting book on the gods and legends of this place, where the power was. A hand drawn map (based off the one at Zee's Welcome Centre) spanned one wall, John's careful script marking out the very few places he had gone to in black. In blue were notated information he had one each area. It was all perfectly legible if one could read Mayan.

John himself was working on another bottle, this one clear. The device he wore on his right hand brought to mind steampunk with only the tips of the glove encased in metal, wire sliding back along the rest of his hand to his wrist. Finishing, he blew on the bottle to clear away the last bits of curled glass. His gloved hand raised, words in a langauge dead for a thousand years were spoken as the etched in sigils solidified into a coherent and strong ward. Depending on the person, they might sense a demon containment bottle being constructed. Or it might not register as anything.

Looking the clear bottle over, he reached for the bottle of amber liquor at his elbow.


--------------------------

Around the Hotel itself

John was a curious man by nature. Chances of him turning up anywhere was likely, especially while he was trying to mentally map out the Midnight Hotel. Shudder and anyone else could give him all the reassurances they wanted that nothing could or would get in here, but John hadn't lived this long by depending on others.

The wards were just as interesting for him. Most people didn't stand in the hallway with what looked like a circular stone with a glass set in it up to their eye staring at a wall. The scry glass was a long used tool of demonologist, what the planchette for an Ouiji board had been based on. Staring through the enhanced lens, John could watch the surface movement and flow of the ward he was studying.

"That is impressive," he said more to himself than anyone around him.

And it was from his point of view. In his world, magic was a thing that existed, but more people killed themselves (or others) trying to weild it than succeeded. Like he'd told the one kid, they weren't playing with fireworks. Magic was napalm. Darwin's theory in action, cleaning out the old gene pool of the stupid that shouldn't be tampering with forces beyond their control.

"The weaving is amazing."

Making one ward or sigil work with another was always a chancy thing in his world. Unless they were scripted to be the same, it could blow back on the caster. This though? This was a wonder from Constantine's point of view. If someone ended up behind John, looking through the scry lens as he was, they would see a glittering mess of lines, curves, marking and completely incomprehensible things.

He didn't tamper with them, not at all even if John would have loved to pull one apart and see what made it all work. The idea of having Anton Tremble-In-Fear-Of-My-Bald-Head descend on him was not a happy one. Instead, John dragged his little notebook out and began sketching.

"Hey mate," he called out to someone he saw passing by. "Hand me that flower over there, will you?"

Although he wasn't going to tamper with wards, he had no problems stealing from the vases set about.

----------
[ooc: if someone enters John's room without him there, they might find themselves caught in a Levitation Trap ward which will hold them a few inches from the ceiling until John gets back. Which would amuse the hell out of him and could be why he leaves his door unlocked and cracked open when not around.]

[dragonaught]

Casey stilled when someone called out, brow furrowed for the odd request. This was one of the newer people here, that much they knew, but usually Casey had an easier time keeping to themself when they were back-and-forthing around the Hotel. It didn't seem like a harmful request, so Casey moved over to one of the vases and inquisitively took hold of one of the stems.

"This one?" they asked, clarifying before they were going to just randomly hand over a flower. "What... are you doing?"

[hellboundheart]

"That would be the one."

Lowering the scry lens, John let it hang from the cord around his neck. The small pencil moved over the paper in a hurry, trying to recall everything he could. While he only saw maybe ten percent of the complex weave, Constantine wanted to remember everything he could about it.

"Any will do really."

All John needed was a living thing to try a mirror on. Magic was like a drug to him, all encompassing and blotting out all other thing. In a few minutes, he might actually take a look at who was speaking to him.

[dragonaught]

At the confirmation, Casey lifted the flower out and handed it to the very strange man. That was certainly a piece of tech he had been using and they were more than curious enough about it and what he was doing now. Snooping around the Hotel for some reason?

"Are you trying to sneak peeks somewhere with that?" they asked, prodding just a bit out of concern and curiosity both.

[hellboundheart]

'Snooping' was part and parcel of who John Constantine was. Silly things like personal space and possessions didn't figure in his world view. Someone who didn't hide their things well enough behind walls of spells deserved to have them looked at and pawed through. Maybe stolen.

Probably stolen.

"Just taking a look at Shuddering Delight with his pants down a little. Nothing to be concerned about, mate."

Taking the flower, John murmured something to the petals and then drew it back from his mouth. As he did, the bloom withered and drew in on itself. Dropping the dead thing on a side table, John hrmmed thoughtfully.

"Imagine that." And then to his audience - "Seems Mr Anton Shudder has a social disease. He should get a doctor to look at that."

The flower had told John no such thing, but far be it from him to take advantage of an opportunity. He couldn't help spitting at Authority.

butting in during staring at the wards, before the flower :3

[edgeoftheknife]

One of the less objectionable functions of the Hotel janitor was dusting the light fixtures that adorned the walls in the public spaces--the lobby, the common room, the hallways. Erskine didn't mind it half so much as he did cleaning the toilets, and dusting the fixtures meant he was free to move about the Hotel, avoiding the other patrons as he saw fit. Which was quite a bit. His off hours were spent largely hiding from everyone in the Hotel who wasn't Anton or Valdis.

He didn't necessarily duck to avoid the familiar figure staring at the walls as he rounded the corner of the hallway, however. Constantine was a known entity, albeit a strange one, and their first meeting hadn't been wholly unpleasant. So Erskine, in his usual three-piece suit, carried his rag over to the first light fixture on the wall opposite Constantine and set about his work.

"The weaving is amazing."

"Anton is one of the best sigil crafters in our world," said Erskine quietly, though he didn't turn to look at John as he spoke.

[hellboundheart]

"I can believe it. This is work of the sort that I've seen maybe one person approach. Not sure even Jasper or Stephen could get near this. Wonder if Tremble would let me get a whole look at the thing."

John doubted it. If he had constructed something resembling the tenth his scry lens let him see, he'd object to anyone examining (and possibly deconstructing) any of it. His head tilted back, looking higher up on the wall. What little he could see left him almost giddy with paired amazement and oh-shit-what-have-I-gotten-myself-into. It was a complex sensation.

"A mirror one is going to be best to try to place atop those. Got no real chance of working them in concert. Whatever that one is doing looks like it goes with that one and that one, and bloody hell. Going to have to lay it on top for sure. Don't even think I could or would want to meddle with that."

A tone of awe John himself didn't like had crept into his voice, killed off quickly. He could do stuff like that not. He just didn't want to. Really.

Lowering his lens, he finally blinked at Erskine as if realizing he was there for the first time. "Grand Mage. Good to see you again. How do you keep that suit clean while working? Not that it doesn't fit you well."

[edgeoftheknife]

"Air magic," he said simply, continuing to work at the light fixture with his rag for a moment before half-turning to look at John... or at least in John's general direction. More at his knees than at his face. "Keeps the dust off. Doesn't do much for splashes, washing windows, that sort of thing. Water magic for that."

Erskine lifted his gaze finally, not to look John in the eye but to glance around the hallway, at the walls around them. "Anton built the Hotel himself, from the ground up, at the end of the war. Kind of wish I'd thought of it, to be honest." It would have been a damn sight healthier, and more productive, than what he'd actually done.

Finally he looked right at John and gave a wan smile. "It's Erskine. I don't think I said so, before. Erskine Ravel."

[hellboundheart]

John had met a few creatures that didn't like to look him in the eye. Most had a reason. The exorcist had a way of seeing things, but in people it could mean a lot of things. Ritchie had the nervous twitch of not doing that, plus he hated John (or said he did) after Newcastle.

"Erskine. Upon the knife."

A thoughtfulness was in his voice, dark eyes watching Erskine without emotion until eye-contact or near such was made. What made a man that way? Had he figured out that John used eye-contact to hypnotize others? Had it happen to him before? Habit of a spellcaster?

"You and a few others told me about the war. What happened with it? Locals don't seem to want to talk about it except to look at me suspiciously. Should warn A-Quiver that he might get some complaints about that. They expect you to obey property lines here and not go some places."

John didn't dive into what did Erskine did after the war right away. Curiosity and patience had to go hand-in-hand in this until he knew where he stood with the twitchy mage.

[shroudofgray]

Yorda had a habit of wandering into open doors that no amount of angry, middle-aged kedanese women armed with brooms could shake her of. She was curious by nature and had no concept of the age old admonishment 'curiosity killed the cat'. Not that she even knew what a cat was, so that particular turn of phrase would be lost on her.

Aside from her curiosity, it was also the strange shift in energies that drew her in through the open door.

She padded in and looked around at the cluttered mess. She hadn't really seen anything that looked lived-in - the castle's empty halls were barren of most furniture, and there had certainly been no personal items. The only space that seemed free of clutter, was the desk a man was working at.

"Why are you making cages?" She pointed, tone a bit accusatory, to the bottles.

[hellboundheart]

If Yorda came back some time when John was gone, Shudder was going to end up getting in on the action. He most likely knew all the traps and wards John had set, could be waiting for the wrong person to trigger one. The Mirror Ward wasn't bad, simply turning a person who tried to walk in around so that they were walking out the door instead. The Repel Ward or the Levitation Trap were ones Shudder probably wouldn't approve one. The Repel would throw someone back out the door, perhaps injuring them. The Levitation one did just that, holding a person prisoner until John released the poor unfortunate. While Anton Shudder hadn't told him 'no' on either, he also hadn't approved them. Everyone knew Shudder's policy on attacking others.

Swallowing the whisky in a gulp, John turned his head and fixed his attention on the girl... person... it... whatever that was in front of him. He was putting his personal bet on a ghost versus any of the other. Setting the Hunger Demon bottle down, he picked up a bluish one with tiny marks cut into the glass. The accusation in her voice wasn't lost on John.

"Because some thing need to be put in cages. Like to hurt people that don't need hurting. Best for everyone all around. You often just invite yourself in?"

[shroudofgray]

It was fortunate then that Yorda only had a penchant for open doors. There had been a conversation about knocking on closed ones and not just wandering in. She didn't quite understand the reasons for it, but if she was going to live in this world, she could follow such simple instructions.

Closer inspection would reveal Yorda was no ghost. She cast a shadow, however much else her body repelled them otherwise. And she had weight enough to leave faint footprints in the carpet.

"I have clean sheets and towels," she said, just a bit defensively, and pointed to her little bin outside the door. In exchange for a room, Anton had her doing chores. No hard labour - just the sort of thing one could entrust to a teenager. Delivering clean linens, washing dishes, dusting the common area. It wasn't much but it helped, and it was better to be in the hotel than aimlessly wandering the alleyways.

"What here needs a cage? Anton Shudder doesn't allow for hurting."

[hellboundheart]

"Here I thought Shimmy would have warned everyone to stay away from my room. Seemed concerned I'd end up poisoning people with my cigarette smoke."

Keeping the midnight blue bottle in hand, he set his cigarette down in the tray at his elbow and poured himself another three fingers of whatever forbidden alcohol he was drinking. A glance was taken at his wriststrap on the right, the gemstone set in the demon's jaws a dull grey. On the left, he wore an exact copy although this one had a reddish stone that pulsed dimly with his heartbeat.

"Thanks, luv, but I do it myself if you don't mind. Less work for you," he added, downing the amber drink and setting the tumbler aside. He didn't mention that there was also less chance of anyone getting in a sneak attack on him. Paranoia and John went hand in hand. "So who might you be? Another servant of the Grouch?"

A keen bit of interest was in his eyes, fingers tapping out a restless pattern on the trap bottle he held idly.

JOHN'S ROOM;

[gistful]

Though Anton and the Hotel had been present during previous landfalls, this was the first time there had been so much interest in the residents of the continent visiting Keeliai. Though Anton had arranged for Constantine's payment in the form of discrete spellwork, he hadn't had a chance to follow up on it yet.

Hatal was a city in a society which glorified and challenged physical prowess. Not only that, but they were more used to crossing racial cultural boundaries. Neither of those things bothered Anton in themselves, but it did mean that he had a bit more issue impressing upon visitors from Hatal what constituted 'stupid'.

It was perhaps to be expected that some of them pushed the point.

It was also perhaps to be expected that Constantine would push the point.

When Anton's keys went hot with an emotional spike, Anton diverted from his chore at the time to make a casual driveby, as he usually did. On this occasion, the driveby took him to Constantine's open door, though he didn't know whether Constantine was present or not. It was simple enough to find out.

[hellboundheart]

While John Constantine was known in a few circles in Ireland, it wasn't the sort that mages moved in or bothered with. Unless it involved demons or things no one else could handle, John tried to keep himself out of it. He'd made a deal there once and tried to honor it. The Irish had longer memories than most.

In the end, it was probably best neither of the groups had known about each other. Anton would have most likely not let him through the door and John would have been a lot more suspicious.

For his part, John's work for Anton had been tip-top. If someone pulled apart the spells or sigils John used, it was a strange sort of sloppy that worked perfectly against all odds. There was no particular school of magic's pattern or a reason why it should have done what it did when it looked as if he'd taken fourteen different parts and stitched them together. But it did.

John's door was open, the mirror trap on it already sprung. It should have sent the invader right back the way they had come in. Problem was that John hadn't perfected stabilizing his wards on top of Anton's. In fact, John made his to break if they started to merge, touch or somehow get too involved with Anton's. Better his break apart than Shudder's. Plus, John was new, his powers not fully snapped together with this new place. Probably why there was a handcarved Eye of Horus on his door to turn back low-level demons. Done without permission.

This, of course, led to his very unhappy invader being held two inches from the ceiling and screaming its fool head off in panic. Good thing it hadn't hit the Ejection Spell on John's bed which would have sent it out the door and into the hallway wall at a good rate of speed.

A whiff of smoke marked the Laughing Magician's arrival about a minute or two after Anton. A click of glass meant he was probably taking a drink of something.

"Quit your caterwauling. Not going to hurt you. A-Quiver here has rules against that."

[gistful]

In that minute or two, Anton had been searching for the ward responsible, completely ignoring the unhappy muin's complaints about being left in the lurch. "Indeed I do," Anton said absently without turning from where he'd pinpointed the ward. Then he added, "Feel free to exercise your right to silence at any moment."

The muin chose not to exercise.

The ward John had offered was a different one to this, Anton rather thought, and though he hadn't had the opportunity to see them close up--yet--it was a good preview of what Anton should expect. Nicely non-lethal--but pointed. Anton could find no fault with it, or with Constantine's warding of his own room, which had been expected. There would be only one punishment today. Fortunately; Anton didn't particularly enjoy that part of his duties. (The gist enjoyed it a little too much.)

The spellwork was sloppy, though. Anton couldn't tell if that was by design or not. A lot about Constantine's sloppiness seemed to be more by design than laziness. The relative cleanliness of his room said that, and how many times had Anton seen someone underestimate perpetually tramp-like Larrikin just because he acted the fool? People overlooked those they disdained.

Anton stepped back and bowed slightly to Constantine, indicating the ward. "Please be so good as to release him. I will eject him from the Hotel once you've done so."

[hellboundheart]

"See, I do listen."

Listening and obeying were two different things, but Constantine thought pointing that out would be more self-defeating than he usually cared to be. Taking a draw off his cigarette, John lifted his free hand and snapped his fingers. As he did, the ward released and the muin dropped straight down.

Lots of nasty things laid around John's room, hidden in plain sight by seeming harmless. The demon and ghost trap bottles were first and foremost, sealed traps that could hold some dangerous things. A mirror (John's one purchase besides the new books and maps) that hung on the wall didn't show their reflections but other shadowy forms only glimpsed. Other little charms sat about, the kind that might do something nasty like cause a genital rash or pissing blood until returned to their owner.

Papa Midnite had once said that there was no respect in what John did, no giving way to a higher power. He commanded magic as if it were his, wove it how he wanted it and fixed it in place. It was as much a drug to him as an addict's would be.

"Warn you here and now, mate," he said to the muin on the floor than Anton, "you stole anything, I'd bring it back quick."

He was sure at least one of his bottles was gone, a small trap one. Not that John cared. Might even make some rent money when the invader brought back the bottle with whatever/whoever it trapped inside. It was a living. What he cared about more was that Anton was here.

"How'd you get here before me, Shivery? You have cameras in here watching me drop trou? Making money on the side that way?" he asked with a laugh that was all show, watchfulness below it.

Simon Tam | OTA

[pompous_today]

[Simon took the time to thoroughly explore his new home once he and River were settled in. He was glad for the accomodations; he knew this strange new land was used to people arriving from all over the place, so it made sense that they'd try to ease their transition, but still. He had a bed and a roof over his head until he could feel like he was earning his keep.

He also found himself fascinated by the non-humans coming and going. Reavers were the closest thing he'd come to aliens back home, and it was still a bit of a shock seeing creatures who were very clearly not human freeling roving and mingling with the humans.

Wonders would never cease.]

[gistful]

[Anton made an effort to put names to faces when someone checked in while he wasn't on the desk, but particularly when they came on the network looking for others specifically. Between the two, he was able to identify Simon Tam and (checking the ledger) confirm that the family name did at least match River's.

[While the young man was in the lobby (admittedly faintly wide-eyed) on morning not long after his arrival, Anton took the time to approach and bow slightly.]

Simon Tam?

[pompous_today]

[Simon smiled and returned the bow.]

That's me. Since you know my name, may I assume you're the hotel owner?

[gistful]

[Good. Anton smiles, and for all his height and imposing impassivity, his smile is unexpectedly gentle.]

I am he; Anton Shudder. You are River's brother, yes? I saw on the network there may be some doubts, but as River quite happily changed rooms I daresay she knows best.

[pompous_today]

I am, yes- I knew she would do something to make sure I had a place to stay as soon as she knew I was here. It is very kind of you to let me live here; I will earn my keep as soon as I can.

[ruinsprofessor]

[Raine's found herself at the Hotel more often again, recently; there are a number of people there to check on.]

[When she catches Simon in the common room she offers a little smile, changes her course to intercept him.]

Simon. Do you have a moment? There's something I've been meaning to ask you.

[They're not at the Guild, and it isn't work hours, but it's opportune.]

[pompous_today]

Of course. [Simon smiled back.] What is it?

[ruinsprofessor]

[Raine leans against the nearest piece of furniture.]

It concerns a friend, and your medical expertise. Although--

[A pause. Hm.]

It may be better discussed privately. I take it you have a room here?